Baba

Chapter 1 (2001)
I was born in Punjab, India where the only radio station broadcast two hours a day. Back then, nobody I knew had a radio. So I built a crystal set, and now I’m inside the biggest crystal set I could ever imagine: CKUA. I immigrated to Canada in 1971, and have been living in Edmonton since 1980. I love to cook and wash dishes. My overall aim in life is to grow old and become ordinary.

Chapter 2 (2006)
Well, I turned 60 this summer. I realized that I am old and ordinary. So mission accomplished, congratulations! I like staying at home and I love coming to work. At home I have two dogs that I love dearly. There is gardening in the summer and football in the winter. What else could a man want? Oh yeah, I have a wife, too. (Sorry Lara.) As I spend my nights at the “Crystal Gondola,” I know I was made for this. I have always liked different types of music and music trivia, and I have always loved radio. So finally, All becomes One and that is where everything comes from.

Chapter 3 (2009)
Getting older also means sorting out what’s really important and what isn’t. There is never enough light in a room. I love waking up and I love being at CKUA; every minute spent either on-air or getting ready for it is well spent. I’m very grateful to connect with our friends/listeners. Every day at CKUA, I learn something new, either about the world around me or my own internal workings. (I think it is one and the same!) I will continue to rock and roll til the day I can’t make it up the stairs to the sixth floor; even then, maybe we can work something out!

Baba’s Travel Mug

I was in Hinton at the Wild Mountain Music Festival when a CKUA listener, Jack, came up to our tent asking about CKUA travel mugs. He wanted a replacement for his old flat mug, which had sustained injury. He mentioned they were great for festivals because the wider base makes it more manageable. I broke the news to him that those travel mugs hadn’t been made in some time.

At CKUA the next week Baba strolled into the staff kitchen. I told him about Jack and the travel mug story. He mentioned having one of those old mugs at home and brought it in as a gift for me the next day.

With Baba’s travel mug I continued my summer festival schedule, going to Stony Plain for the Blueberry Bluegrass & Country Festival. On Saturday, I saw Jack approaching the CKUA table. His eyes immediately gravitated toward the mug, which was about half full. He went straight for his wallet, offering to buy the mug. I told him I would give him the mug as long as I could tell the story & take a picture.

Jack was able to thank Baba personally when he ran into Baba at the Edmonton Folk Festival!